Midwest Regional ESC opens academy at Adriel

Longtime teacher and administrator Jerry Lenhart is excited about a new opportunity in the community for students who do not “fit in” in a traditional classroom.

Jerry Lenhart, left, works with a student at Transitions Academy at the former Adriel School. (PHOTO | MIDWEST REGIONAL ESC)

As principal of the former Shelby County Cooperative Learning Center and Adriel School in West Liberty, Mr. Lenhart has been working with at-risk young people for more than 20 years.

Now, he is the principal and a teacher at the Midwest Regional Educational Service Center’s new Transitions Academy inside the former Adriel School facility.

“I’ve never met a bad kid yet,” Mr. Lenhart said. “They just make bad choices, sometimes because they don’t know any other way. It’s my challenge to help them make better choices. Many are like square pegs being shoved into a round hole.”

The Transitions Academy currently serves students kindergarten through grade 12 in school districts in Hardin, Logan and Shelby counties. It offers an alternative educational setting for students who simply aren’t able to succeed in a regular school setting, face suspensions or expulsions or re-entering public schools after a term of incarceration.